National Outcry Against Izzo, MSU Hoops Totally Ridiculous
Ever since 2011, the Michigan State Spartans have met up with either the Kansas Jayhawks, Duke Blue Devils, or Kentucky Wildcats in the annual Champions Classic, held at a neutral site. The showcase is a one-night-only event, with back-to-back games between the four powerhouse programs.
However, Michigan State hasn't had the best showing in the event. It is 5-9 at the event, with the Spartans' recent defeat at the hands of the No. 1 Jayhawks stinging a bit extra after a dismal shooting performance. Kansas is 9-5, Duke is 8-6 and Kentucky is 6-8.
The Spartans are also the only team in the event to not win a national championship since its inception. Their 2000 title is the furthest away, despite being the last one from a Big Ten team. The Spartans are getting calls to exit the competition, per the Spun's Matt Hladik.
"There’s about five teams that deserve to be in the Champions Classic over Michigan State," said college basketball podcaster Mark Titus.
USA Today's Dan Wolken wrote, "If college basketball is going to have an event called the Champions Classic, it might be a good idea to have teams that actually win championships. Time to boot Michigan State and add UConn."
The New York Post's Zach Braziller wrote, "Maybe include the best program in the sport? The actual back to back champion? Michigan State doesn’t belong in this event anymore."
Hladik himself doesn't think the Spartans' time is up in the early-November clash between blue bloods.
"At this point, it seems unlikely that Michigan State will get the boot unless the program falls off a cliff," he wrote. "The calls to remove the Spartans from the Champions Classic aren't going anywhere, though, as long as they remain on the path they have been on."
The Spartans were a good shooting performance away from knocking off the top-ranked team in the nation.
The Classic is huge for Spartan fans and a measuring stick for Izzo. Think about key performances that set the tone for entire seasons, such as the 2015 Champions Classic when Denzel Valentine dropped a 29-point triple-double against an elite Kansas Jayhawks team.
That performance instantly put the Spartans, and Valentine, on the map for a season that saw them rise to the very top of college basketball for a time (we won't discuss the tournament, though).
The thing is -- the Spartans have been the toast of the Big Ten throughout this century in all but a few seasons, that handful of times Michigan or Purdue found success. The Spartans are the representative of the conference.
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